1. Field
Advancements in mesh networks are needed to provide improvements in performance, efficiency, and utility of use.
2. Related Art
Unless expressly identified as being publicly or well known, mention herein of techniques and concepts, including for context, definitions, or comparison purposes, should not be construed as an indication that such techniques and concepts are previously publicly known or otherwise part of the prior art. All references cited herein (if any), including patents, patent applications, and publications, are hereby incorporated by reference in their entireties, whether specifically incorporated or not, for all purposes.
Mobile applications are becoming increasingly more popular in the context of mesh networks, e.g., for public safety applications, or for users being able to access the Internet while commuting via train.
Some applications are such that a mobile node is always able to reach a static (i.e., stationary, not mobile) mesh node directly (mobility within a static infrastructure), others are such that the mobile node needs to forward its traffic along a path composed of one or more other mobile nodes before it is able to reach the static infrastructure, still others are such that there is no static infrastructure and the mobiles only communicate with each other by forwarding packets on each other's behalf. Typically the static mesh infrastructure is attached to a wired network through a wired mesh portal. When there is no connection to the wired network, the mesh is referred to as a standalone mesh. In a traditional ad hoc network, typically the whole network is treated as a possibly mobile network.
As a mobile node moves, it may be within reach of multiple mesh networks, each of which might be configured with a distinct set of parameters, including different (sets of) channels, and may offer a distinct set of services. In order to maintain connectivity, the mobile needs to decide which mesh to use to relay its traffic to its destination(s). More broadly, as the mobile node moves around it needs to decide what node or nodes to use as immediate relay(s) towards its destination(s).
In a traditional wireless infrastructure network, e.g., Wi-Fi (802.11) Access infrastructure, or in the traditional cellular infrastructure, a mobile client can reach the infrastructure directly (along 1 wireless hop) and its decision about which of multiple nodes in the infrastructure to attach to is based on the quality of the link to the point of attachment in the infrastructure. The attachment point is then directly connected to the wired infrastructure.
In a traditional mesh, it is usually assumed that any node may communicate with any other node and so there isn't any notion of attachment or reference destination. Wi-Fi (802.11) does have the notion of attachment, however it refers to attachment only of clients to APs, where the APs tend to be directly connected to a wired networks, and is only based on the best signal strength of frames from the APs that is recorded at the client node. Cellular and WiMax networks have a similar architecture, where mobile clients attach to base stations which are static and the base stations are attached to the wired infrastructure.
In 802.11-style networks, clients do not send packets to each other directly at all and don't forward packets to each other (APs are not mobile). There is an ad hoc mode in 802.11 that enables clients to talk to each other directly but in that mode they are not able to talk to APs, and they still cannot forward traffic on each other's behalf.